HOW ADVANCEMENTS IN VEHICLE CONSTRUCTION AND TECHNOLOGY ARE IMPACTING THE VEHICLE COLLISION REPAIR BUSINESS LIKE NEVER BEFORE
The significant changes that are impacting all phases of the automotive industry will likely come as no surprise to anyone reading Canadian auto dealer. Perhaps, like many other areas of life, change in the industry seems to now be happening at an exponential rate instead of occurring gradually over time. Having spent almost three decades in the industry, I can honestly say I’ve seen perhaps more change in the last three years than I have since I first got involved in the business.
The reality is change — and perhaps rapid change — is a permanent fixture in our lives and the sooner we get comfortable with knowing we can never get comfortable, the better we’ll be able to cope.
If you think about federal greenhouse gas regulations that were put in place for 2011-2016 in Canada (mirroring those in the U.S.), and the second round of these regulations for 2017-2025 that will effectively establish a 54.5 mpg (4.3 L/100 km) combined fleet fuel economy standard, it is easy to appreciate how this significant change in fuel economy improvement (roughly 5 per cent per year compared to historical improvements of 1 per cent per annum) has ignited high degrees of change for those that develop advanced technology propulsion systems, such as hybrids, plug-in hybrids, battery electric, natural gas, clean diesel and fuel cells.
NEW MATERIALS
In addition to new propulsion systems, new lightweight materials are being developed and integrated into the vehicle like never before. It is easy to understand the rationale for this given that for every 200 lbs (91 kg) that you reduce a vehicle’s weight by, you garner a 2-3 per cent improvement in fuel economy.
Aluminum, magnesium, carbon fibre, advanced plastics and other lightweight materials are all being incorporated into vehicles at an increasingly rapid pace. Likewise, other vehicle components such as steering are changing as well, not only to reduce mass, but also to facilitate change in other realms, such as connected vehicles and ultimately, autonomous driving.
Aside from the change being driven by greenhouse gas emissions regulations, there is significant change being driven both by safety regulators and by consumer demand with respect to the high level of electronics in modern vehicles. From GPS systems, to backup cameras, lane departure warning and blindspot monitoring systems, as well as adaptive cruise control and self-parking technology — the degree of electronics in the modern vehicle makes the Apollo 11 spacecraft seem positively pedestrian by comparison.
These advances in technology and materials will require increasingly specialized equipment and training to ensure vehicles involved in accidents are repaired to a pre-collision OEM standard.
Changes in this area of the business are a challenge even for the vehicle manufacturers to keep up with. Recently, I had the opportunity to watch a video of a vehicle manufacturer simulating the same accident on two identical models of the same vehicle. One vehicle was repaired using the manufacturer’s old standards, tooling and recommendations while the other was repaired using the OEM’s current standards. Once repaired, the vehicles were then placed in the same accident simulation that had caused the damage to them in the first place. This time however, the two vehicles reacted differently when exposed to the same accident. The vehicle repaired utilizing the old standards had measurably more passenger compartment intrusion than the vehicle repaired using the new standards. The point is that if there can be that much variability in repairs, it underscores the greater challenge facing the whole collision repair industry.
Manufacturers, insurers and collision repairers have a common goal — namely ensuring that their common customer has their vehicle repaired properly — ideally at the lowest possible cost. A proper collision repair provides the consumer with the confidence that they will be just as safe in their vehicle as they would be had it not been involved in an accident. Likewise, a proper collision repair will assist in preserving the value of a vehicle that has been hit.
BETTER UNDERSTANDING
However, a proper collision repair may not be the cheapest and that’s why there needs to be increased dialogue and understanding between OEMs, collision repairers and insurance companies through efforts such as the Canadian Collision Industry Forum.
Within the Global Automakers of Canada, we have also recently established a collision repair committee, as many manufacturers move to establish their own certification standards for collision repair facilities. Given that the equipment, tooling and training required to properly repair today’s modern vehicles is not insignificant, the greatest benefit for the collision repair industry can only come from engagement, dialogue and information sharing between repair facilities, OEMs and insurance companies. At the end of the day, all parties need to ensure that vehicles damaged as the result of accidents are repaired correctly and by properly trained professionals using the latest repair techniques and procedures as well as the right tools and equipment.
